As most people have noticed, April is over and yet once-a-week updates have continued. A quick update of what's happened in the meantime:

I officially graduated (with Honors,) have an agreement to pick up more hours at Jamberry starting this week, finished the gaming module art (unless any other images are requested,) and caught up on commissions. FE's facebook account and the commission information have both been updated. Currently, I'm making Imperial G.E.L.F. pages, writing FE arcs for both the archives and Sides Stories, earning enough cash to pick up a new livestream camera (with hopes of starting regular livestream sessions in June,) and of course making FE pages.

And, my big brother got married over the weekend. Trust me, the best place to go after a wedding is the store 'Gotham City Comics and Coffee' on Free Comic Book Day.

So, starting next week (May 14th,) FE will begin updating twice a week again-every Monday and Friday. I appreciate everyone's patience during the past month, and believe it's the start of a great summer.~

For the month of April, the webcomic Furry Experience will only update on Saturdays. It's a difficult decision to make, since my goal is to work towards more updates per week, not less. But right now, the only other option would be to take a break from FE for the month, which I absolutely don't want.

April is going to be a very busy month. For those interested, here's what I'll be up to:

I'm graduating with a Bachelors degree at the end of the month. That is, I'll graduate provided I pass all my classes and I put together a portfolio that's approved by the department. And being part of the Honors program, I'm also aiming to earn the Honors chords the department provides to graduates.
I've recently started a design/business internship at Jamberry Nails, and am working towards (hopefully) being hired on full-time after graduating.
Working on the artwork for a gaming module for the company Fantastic Journeys Publishing.
Creating comic pages for Imperial G.E.L.F.
Catching up on other commission orders.
Updating FE/Art related equipment and online accounts. (Facebook, Livestream, Commission info, etc.)

It's not much more than I usually have on my plate, but just enough that something keeps getting pushed off. And as the number of detours used this month proved, it's usually FE. So rather than update a bunch of detours and apologies this month, the updates will change (temporarily) to a more manageable schedule.

Thanks to everyone for reading FE, and I appreciate your patience during this month.

For those who don't understand the news title, the following paragraph will help you catch up:

Earlier this year, a new section entitled 'Side Stories' was added to this website. This section offered stand alone stories involving FE characters, which readers could purchase for a small fee ($3.00.) The first Side Story featured in this section was entitled, 'Brian's Big Date.' This comic taken after the current arc of the archives ended, (pages 158-181,) when Brian finally asks Dawn on a date. 'Brian's Big Date' went into detail of what happened on said date.

After the launch (and working out initial bugs) of 'Brian's Big Date, I have steadily received notes and messages from readers, from being upset about having to pay for the comic to politely debating why the Side Stories aspect belittled the Furry Experience characters. All were annoyed at the fact the arc took forever to build up to a highly anticipated event, (the date itself,) and suddenly readers were asked to pay to find out. All these messages have been answered, but I've repeated myself enough times I believe we'd all benefit from a public explanation as to why 'Brian's Big Date' is posted as a Side Story for sale instead of a free archive arc.

The Side Stories are meant to provide further insight into to the characters of Furry Experience. All Side Stories will connect to the main archives in one way or another, however, I agree it's not fair for readers to have to buy separate arcs to understand what's going on in the FE universe. So reading the Side Stories is NOT required to enjoy the main archives.

For example, the website's story arc introduced events which established the start of Brian and Dawn's relationship. If the reader wasn't aware of these events, they would get lost and confused reading future arcs involving Brian and Dawn. ("They're dating? I thought she hated him.")
'Brian's Big Date', on the other hand, is just one of the many adventures they'll be having together-while it has fun extra content for those wanting to know more about Brian and Dawn, those who choose not to read it will not feel lost in future arcs involving Brian and Dawn's dating life.

In fact, when the original arc was written (oh so long ago) it was meant to end exactly when it did-Brian and Dawn agreeing to go on a date, allowing them to be depicted as a couple in future arcs. It wasn't until preparing for Anime Banzai last year that I considered creating a comic revealing what actually happened on that first date, leading to the creation of 'Brian's Big Date.' (Not all Side Stories will be available in print, but more popular ones will have limited publications.)

Now, I don't want anyone walking away thinking I'm mad about the notes and responses I've gotten about this issue. I'm touched so many people care enough about this comic to take the time to share their concerns, and impressed with how polite and well written all the messages I've received have been. Readers have given valuable feedback that will be taken into consideration when creating future Side Story/archive interactions. However, 'Brian's Big Date' will remain in the Side Stories section of the website. Hopefully this lengthy explanation has answered questions as to why.

Invisible gold star points to whoever can list how many times the word "date" appeared in this post.

The Original Art Auctions are officially closed-thanks to everyone who stopped by to see them. ^^ Both Dawn and Brian and Hunter and Cat found new homes through them.

I also want to apologize to anyone who got locked out of the auction when I posted the 24 hour notice. Apparently, after you sign up with Furbuy you can't bid on auctions with only 24 hours left for seven days. (This is why Ellen needs to read the 'Terms and Conditions' paragraphs when she signs up for sites. ^^; )

I've already gotten noted by someone who couldn't bid, asking if they could purchase a piece that hadn't been bid on. I was fine with it-and now Happy Peanut Butter Cat and Jane and John have new homes, as well. If there's anyone who'd like to purchase Louis and Diana for $15 via paypal, send me a note!

Overall, it was a good experience-again, thanks to everyone who stopped by to see the auctions. I'd like to try it again sometime~

For those interested, there's less than 24 hours left of the original FE artwork auctions. Anyone wanting to make last-minute bids can find them at this link: http://www.furbuy.com/seller/Ellen_Natalie.html

Interested in owning some original FE art? Possible auction sites were discussed earlier this week, and now five pieces featuring Cat, Dawn, and other characters from the comic are now up for auction at Furbuy: http://www.furbuy.com/seller/Ellen_Natalie.html

Pieces featured include all four of the Couples Series so far, along with a sample image of Cat used to test the lamination machine.~

School bills were a bit more than expected this semester, and I'd like to auction some original FE art to make up the difference. I'm researching different bidding sites,, but have little idea which ones are most popular or have unexpected twists to their operations. What are your preferences when it comes to bidding online? Did you have a great auctioning experience or horror story from a particular site? Any general advice you'd like to offer? Share it here-all feedback is welcome!

I believe I've worked out the kinks that went wrong in the last stream, but to make sure, I'm doing a test stream today. If I can make it through a few pieces without the black screen of death appearing, I'll officially re-schedule the favorite character poll stream that was interrupted. Feel free to stop by and give feedback to sound, picture, etc: http://www.livestream.com/ellennatalie

Please be courteous when speaking in the chat box, no profanity or spamming, and keep role-playing to a minimum.~